Skid steer loaders, tractors and other work vehicles typically work on job sites that are remotely located from the vehicle storage location or garage. The vehicles are loaded onto a trailer or truck bed for transportation between the storage location and the work site. Before transportation, one or more vehicles are driven onto the trailer and firmly secured to the trailer. A secure load is necessary in order that the vehicle does not fall off the trailer during transportation.
Securing vehicles to a trailer is usually performed with chains, and the process requires several steps. The loose chains are stored in a box when no load is being transported. The chains are removed from the storage box, untangled, and cleaned of mud and debris. One end of a chain is attached to the trailer. The chain is then pulled though openings in the chassis of the vehicle and the other end of the chain is attached to the trailer. The chain may have one or more hooks to make it easier to fasten them to the trailer. The chain is then tightened using a come-along, winch or other chain-tightening device. This process is repeated for each securing point. If the chains are tangled and mud-clogged, the load securing process is delayed. The chain attaching and tightening phases are also time-consuming, as chains slip during attachment and they are heavy and awkward to handle and thread through openings in the chassis of the vehicle.
The number of securing points is determined by the load stability, which is further influenced by the height, weight, and footprint of the load on the trailer. The transportation laws of the state or country may also proscribe the number and type of securing methods and points that are used. Currently, securing a load to at least four points is common. As more securing points are used, the time required for the operator to fully secure the load increases. Also, with more securing points required comes the need to carry and store more chains for attaching the vehicle.
Trailers typically have many locations along their sides to which chains may be secured. There are far fewer potential locations on the work vehicle itself around or through which chains may be looped or threaded. A typical work vehicle has only a few attachment points, and these are typically disposed low on the vehicle chassis around the tires. Often, there is no attachment point, or an attachment point that is not convenient, forcing the operators to, wrap the chains around vehicle axles, frame members or bumpers.
Attachment points on work vehicles are typically covered with mud, ice and other debris after a long work day. They have to be cleaned before chains are attached to or threaded through them. The operator typically gets quite dirty when threading the chains to attachment points or wrapping them around frame members. Worse, if no attachment points are within reach, or at the proper locations on the vehicle to secure the vehicle well, the operator must climb onto, over, or under the vehicle to secure the chains.
The chains are typically tightened by a winch or come along with one end fixed to the rail on the side of the trailer and the other end extending to the end of the chain that was just passed through the attachment point on the work vehicle. In another arrangement, a retractable device is mounted to the bed of a truck or trailer, and a strap is extended with a hook at the end that is attached to the trailer's cargo. The strap is tensioned by a tensioning mechanism located partway along the belt. This arrangement requires that the operator pull the belt tight and hold it while locking the tensioning device. Due to its location on the bed of the truck or trailer, the retractable device is prone to dirt and ice encrustation.
What is needed is a process of securing a work vehicle to a trailer that requires minimal steps. What is also needed is a retractable tie down mechanism that does not require looping or attaching to the vehicle during the load securing process. What is further needed is a retractable mechanism that is mounted to the vehicle, and is self-retracting such that the operator need only pull a hook out from the vehicle and attach the hook to the trailer.